According to an annual report released today by the Better Business Bureau system, consumer complaints to the organization increased by 9.7 percent nationwide in 2009. Not only did BBBs receive nearly 1 million complaints filed by disgruntled customers last year, consumers turned to the non-profit more than 65 million times for help researching businesses across North America.
“In Utah, complaints were up 29.6%,” said Jane Driggs, President and CEO of the Better Business Bureau of Utah. “During these hard times consumers are concerned about keeping what little money they earn. We noted more complaints regarding smaller issues, which may not have been pursued if the economy was better.”
The cell phone industry received the largest number of complaints in 2009 with 37,477, a 2.1 percent increase over last year. The cable & satellite TV industry ranked second with 32,616 complaints, an 8.7 percent increase over the previous year. Rounding out the top three, banks received 29,920 complaints, a 42.3 percent increase over the previous year.
While the cell phone industry, cable & satellite TV industry and banks received a high volume of complaints, two of the three industries saw improvements in their resolution rates over the previous year. Cell phone companies resolved 97.4 percent of complaints; the cable & satellite TV industry resolved 97.2 percent. The resolution rate by banks declined slightly to 95.2 percent.
The report also reveals that BBB Reliability Reports—which are available online for free at www.bbb.org, and contain information on a business’s accreditation status, letter-grade rating and complaint history—are increasingly popular as a free tool for consumers to research the trustworthiness of businesses. The nearly 4 million BBB Reliability Reports® on businesses across North America were viewed more than 65 million times in 2009. The most popular industries researched through BBB were roofing contractors, general contractors and mortgage brokers.
Following are the top 10 industries by volume of consumer complaints filed across North America with BBB in 2009:
|
Industry |
Total Complaints |
Rank by number of complaints |
Percentage Change over 2008 |
Percentage of Resolved Complaints |
|
Cellular Phones Service & Equipment |
37,477 |
1 |
2.1% |
97.4% |
|
Television – Cable, CATV & Satellite |
32,616 |
2 |
8.7% |
97.2% |
|
Banks |
29,920 |
3 |
42.3% |
95.2% |
|
Auto Dealers-New Cars |
26,888 |
4 |
-2.4% |
84.1% |
|
Internet Shopping |
21,494 |
5 |
9.4% |
71.7% |
|
Collection Agencies |
15,797 |
6 |
-3.3% |
86.6% |
|
Auto Dealers - Used Cars |
13,686 |
7 |
2.5% |
70.8% |
|
Telephone Companies |
13,470 |
8 |
11.2% |
96.1% |
|
Furniture - Retail |
13,158 |
9 |
-2.9% |
78.3% |
|
Auto Repair & Service |
12,736 |
10 |
9.5% |
65.9% |
|
|
|
|
|
|
Average resolution rate across all industries for 2009 was 76.2 percent
For a complete industry breakdown of all complaints filed with the BBB in 2009, and previous years, go to www.bbb.org/us/statistics. Utah top 10 industries and statistics are available at, http://utah.bbb.org/post/bbb-of-utah-2009-annual-statistics-1680.
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About the Better Business Bureau
The Better Business Bureau of Utah is a 501 (c)(6) not-for-profit corporation serving the entire state of Utah. The organization is funded primarily by membership dues from more than 2,800 local business and professional firms. The BBB promotes integrity, consumer confidence and business ethics through business self-regulation in the local marketplace. Services provided by the BBB include reliability reports on companies and charitable organizations, general monitoring of advertising in the marketplace, dispute resolution services, and consumer/business education programs. All services are provided at no cost to the public, with the occasional exception of arbitration. Visit www.bbb.org or call 801-892-6009.